Our Vision

Making the most of our Golden Opportunity

We are now able to reflect on a magnificent summer of sport (2012) which has capped an unforgettable year for Welsh Athletics.

Twelve months ago, we looked forward and described the burning ambition within Welsh Athletics to capitalise on the UK hosting “the greatest show on earth”. The results were beyond our wildest dreams and the success of the Games has now presented a golden opportunity to drive the sport forward on many fronts.

The responsibility now rests with all of us to capitalise on this profile and exposure and to seize the moment, to inspire the next generation.

We now move into a new chapter for the sport of athletics, which will be defined by how well we turn inspiration into implementation.

In 2007, Welsh Athletics set-out a five-step plan to realise the potential of athletics in Wales. After five years, it is worth reflecting on how far we have come. Since 2007, the Board’s approach to leading the organisational change within Welsh Athletics has been focused on the need to establish a modern, dynamic, national governing body for athletics in Wales. This approach was based on a two phase plan. Firstly, establishing organisational stability through the solid business foundations of financial control and effective governance and then instilling a culture of delivery, (delivery through partnership).

We are now able to recognise opportunities for innovation and can demonstrate a significant contribution to the Vision for Sport in Wales. The next four year cycle presents a golden opportunity and we now have the structure in place to turn this opportunity into a sustainable and vibrant future for athletics in Wales.

The presentation of this document demonstrates an ongoing commitment to the wider strategies established by Welsh Government and Sport Wales and to a set of strategic objectives articulated by UKA on behalf of the national governing bodies of the four home nations.

As we begin the next four-year cycle, Welsh Athletics is able to hit the ground running, as:

1. We are recognised as a fundamental movement sport

2. We are the best performing Commonwealth Games sport in Wales

3. We are the largest mass participation sport in Wales

We are therefore aware of the important role that athletics plays in the development of physical literacy, in creating a more active nation through engagement with sporting communities, in nurturing talent and in succeeding on the international stage.

The following Executive Summary describes the evolution of Welsh Athletics. It describes where we are on the journey to realise our potential as the leading Olympic sport. It sets out our strategic framework, describes recent success in achieving our targets and articulates the ambition for the next four-year cycle. It describes the demand in the community and the plan to meet this demand by building on our success.

Athletics needs to be flexible to meet the challenge of a rapidly changing environment. We are confident that we have a progressive infrastructure in place which enables all involved in the sport to collaborate as one team in order to deliver our strategic objectives.

We look forward to working with you to realise the vision for sport in Wales.